The Swimmers

A Novel

By: Julie Otsuka

Narrated by: Traci Kato-Kiriyama

NATIONAL BEST SELLER • From the best-selling, award-winning author of The Buddha in the Attic and When the Emperor Was Divine comes a novel about what happens to a group of obsessed recreational swimmers when a crack appears at the bottom of their local pool. This searing, intimate story of mothers and daughters—and the sorrows of implacable loss—is the most commanding and unforgettable work yet from a modern master.

The swimmers are unknown to one another except through their private routines (slow lane, medium lane, fast lane) and the solace each takes in their morning or afternoon laps. But when a crack appears at the bottom of the pool, they are cast out into an unforgiving world without comfort or relief.

One of these swimmers is Alice, who is slowly losing her memory. For Alice, the pool was a final stand against the darkness of her encroaching dementia. Without the fellowship of other swimmers and the routine of her daily laps she is plunged into dislocation and chaos, swept into memories of her childhood and the Japanese American incarceration camp in which she spent the war. Alice's estranged daughter, reentering her mother's life too late, witnesses her stark and devastating decline.

©2022 Julie Otsuka (P)2022 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

CARNEGIE MEDAL FOR EXCELLENCE WINNER • A Best Book of the Year: VOGUE and KIRKUS

“Otsuka’s prose is powerfully subdued: She builds lists and litanies that appear unassuming, even quotidian, until the paragraph comes to an end, and you find yourself stunned by what she has managed, your throat tight with the beautiful detail . . . This is a novel of not just accumulation, but repetition, scenes looping in the way that the mind does, or the way swimmers swim laps. Compounded, these accretions build to an incredible feeling of loss, and too-late-ness . . . In a time of monotony and chaos, when death is as concrete as it is unimaginable, and when cracks can and do appear in the pool for no discernible reason, The Swimmers is an exquisite companion.” –Rachel Khong, The New York Times Book Review

"Once per decade we are graced with a new book by Otsuka, the award-winning author of 2012’s The Buddha in the Attic and 2003’s When The Emperor Was Divine. This year’s novel starts as a catalogue of spoken and unspoken rules for swimmers at an aquatic center but unfolds into a powerful story of a mother’s dementia and her daughter’s love. If Otsuka doesn’t write another novel for several years, it will be okay. This is one to be savored and reread." –Becky Meloan, The Washington Post

“The Swimmers is a slim brilliant novel about the value and beauty of mundane routines that shape our days and identities; or, maybe it's a novel about the cracks that, inevitably, will one day appear to undermine our own bodies and minds; and — who knows? — it could also be read as a grand parable about the crack in the world wrought by this pandemic . . . Otsuka's signature spare style as a writer unexpectedly suits her capacious vision . . . The Swimmers has the verve and playfulness of spoken word poetry.” –Maureen Corrigan, Fresh Air/NPR

“A quick and tender story of a group of swimmers who cope with the disruption of their routines in various ways . . . Otsuka cleverly uses various points of view: the swimmers’ first-person-plural narration effectively draws the reader into their world, while the second person keenly conveys the experiences of Alice’s daughter, who tries to recoup lost time with her mother after Alice loses hold of her memories and moves into a memory care facility. It’s a brilliant and disarming dive into the characters’ inner worlds.” –Publishers Weekly [starred review]

Life before and during dementia

Moving narrative, primarily in the form of a daughter’s checklist of perceptions, of a woman whose life as an avid swimmer changes due to the gradual onset of dementia. The story is related in a mechanical tone but is moving nevertheless and will ring familiar to those who have helped/witnessed a parent going through this hellish transition.

Not the right title

I enjoyed the beginning of this book as it related to swimmers, but the end was rather depressing and it didn’t tie into the swimmers piece again.

It’s like swimming - takes a bit of effort and feel for it

A number of reviewers gig this book as being 2 or more stories. They’re missing the connection between the pool centered opening and the rest of the story. Look for it, it’s definitely there throughout, though more subtle than some may like.

Well told.

The content is insightful and a story I can relate to. I enjoyed the book and will say it is really good

Moving

Intriguing style and moving story. I was so touched by each chapter.l highly recommend this book and am interested to see what else Julie Otsuka has written.

Powerful metaphor, impactful story

This book was recommended to me with no explanation and I'm so glad I gave it a listen. As a member of a whole family of lap swimmers, I was laughing and nodding at the description of the characters in the first chapter and bemused by the focus on the cracks and exploration of everyone's reaction - the ending of that arc was sad and unexpected and left the "reader" and community hanging -- a powerful parallel to the second phase of the novel, the story of one of the swimmer's decline told from the perspective of her daughter. While the story of the pool was disappointing, the story of the swimmer and her family was sometimes beautiful and completely tragic. I'll be thinking about the metaphor and the devolution of a life for a long time to come.

Stick it out

Just like a long swim work out the first few hundred yards can seem tedious. I’m so glad I stuck it out to the end. If you have a loved one suffering from memory loss this book is especially meaningful.

Two stories

I enjoyed the first part of the book about the swimmers and their community, but the second half of the book really was about a woman with dementia that really had little to do with the first half.

The info about what to expect from dementia was helpful

Long intro in the beginning to set up the story line was tiring. It was very informative.

Meaningful Experience

Otsuka captures not only the ritual of a detached yet bonded community but also the heart-wrenching regret and despair of losing a loved one to dementia. The steady rhythm of her backloaded declarative and highly evocative and detailed sentences lends a mesmerizing captivation. I devoted my afternoon to listening and felt a frequent twinge of recognition.